


Stargate Atlantis Tarot

by Kyn_Moonlight (Kyn_Moonligjt)



Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: Digital Art, Rodney McKay/John Sheppard implied - Freeform, Tarot, Tarot Challenge
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-03
Updated: 2020-02-03
Packaged: 2021-02-27 18:42:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 23
Words: 2,566
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22530409
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kyn_Moonligjt/pseuds/Kyn_Moonlight
Summary: FanArt (digital composites)Stargate: Atlantis Tarot – Major Arcana
Comments: 16
Kudos: 38





	1. Intro, notes & explanations

**Author's Note:**

> Created for the SGS Secret Valentine Art Shindig 2011 on Livejournal
> 
> Chapter 1 is notes and introduction. Individual cards with explanations follow as one chapter each.
> 
> I only built the Major Arcana (which was already broader than the challenge called for and encompassed a few months of work). If you really want to use the cards in a divinatory manner, they can be paired with the minor arcana from most decks (Rider-Waite style would be most compatible). 
> 
> (‘Ancient’ was based on my understanding of Latin at the time – I might use Fortem; strong person rather than Fortis; the concept of strength, but I’m not going to re-translate everything now)
> 
> If you really, really, actually wanted to use these cards as a Tarot deck, I have a HR printable pdf of them that I could send via WeTransfer or similar, and which can (if you're pdf-print savvy) be scaled to match your preferred deck.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Stargate Atlantis Tarot  
> digital fanart originally created for the SGS Secret Valentine Art Shindig 2011 on Livejournal

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I only built the Major Arcana (which was already broader than the challenge called for and encompassed a few months of work). In tarot, the Major Arcana are the ‘people cards’ - the big impact movers and shakers. If you want to use the cards in a divinatory manner, they can be paired with the minor arcana (action and effects cards) from most decks (Rider-Waite style would be most compatible).
> 
> (‘Ancient’ was based on my understanding of Latin at the time – I might use Fortem; strong person rather than Fortis; the concept of strength, but I’m not going to re-translate everything now)

The Stargate: Atlantis Tarot – Major Arcana

A Fan Artwork Homage to the show and characters  
Not for resale or distribution, not for profit

The _Stargate: Atlantis_ Name, Characters and Photos © Syfy

Design By Kyn_Moonlight - Originally created for SGA Secret Art Valentine Art Shindig 2011 (SGA Art Valentine Livejournal)

**About the art:** The windows of Atlantis make up the border. The character images are taken from screen caps and production shots (photos and characters property of MGM/ Syfy Channel) composited with symbols from traditional Tarot and other imagery. The artistic brush & sketch filters and textures are from Photoshop CS5.

Across the top of the cards it says “Atlantis” in Ancient lettering. At the bottom, there’s the number and title of the card, in English and ‘Ancient’ (as in canon, that’s mediocre Latin in the Ancient font). Some terms had no Ancient/Latin-ish equivalent translation, so I gave it my best shot at expressing the concept - ie: Hierophant as a cleric-judge, and Empress as a queen-emperor - and sometimes I just picked the coolest sounding term.

 **The interpretation & symbolism: **Very loosely based on classic Rider-Waite style Tarot, the players in the Atlantis Major Arcana are influenced by the character’s personality type and interactions, and in some instances on the situations I could find pictures of, rather than an exact literal correlation.

The reason Tarot works as a tool for examining the direction of your life in a given situation is that the concepts of all the cards are aspects of our own personality, so most of the cards could really have been any of the characters. The traits they embody and the divinatory meanings are a mix of traditional and my own Atlantis-flavored worldview, which I think I’ve explained in the accompanying descriptions.

When used in an actual reading, a card may represent the suggested qualities in yourself, in the situation around you or in another person. In all instances there’s potential for both the positive and negative traits of the card to be in play, depending on your actions and reactions, but in general an upright presentation of a card is more heavily infused with the better qualities and reversed implies more the associated faults and dangers or a lack of the desirable ones.

The Card Backs:

The design on the card backs is taken from the glowing panels in the Jumper, and – like Tarot – represents energy that can reveal potential, allowing thought to be manifest into reality, while the Stargate is your portal to the answers you seek in the cards. Above and below it says “Atlantis Tarot” in Ancient lettering.


	2. Card 0 - The Fool

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Card 0 - The Fool

**Card 0 – The Fool** _[Maccus – jester]_

**Jennifer Keller –** She’s no fool, but her youthful innocence, symbolized by the circlet of flowers, means she’s open to the myriad possibilities that surround her like a field of daisies. A traveler far from home, she walks into the unknown – and only fate will reveal whether the outcome is good or bad. Like the number zero, the Fool card isn’t nothingness, but the moment of breath before all potential opens up before you.

 **Divinatory meanings:** naivety, innocence, potential, infinite possibilities, foolhardiness, leaping without looking – into possible danger, optimism, new beginnings, new choices, entering the unknown, child-like fearlessness, risk.


	3. Card 1 – The Magician

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Card 1 – The Magician

**1 – The Magician** _[Magus – Mage]_

****

**John Sheppard** – He shapes the universe to his will, manifesting the Ancient magics of the infinite, called down by the power crystals and gives them shape and substance in the world, symbolized by the cup of life. Like all magicians, he’s alchemist, philosopher, conman and tactician. Whatever problem needs to be solved, whatever he needs or desires, he has the power to turn thought to reality and make it happen.

 **Divinatory meanings:** will, manifesting your desires, solution to a problem, slight of hand, personal power, the reveal, transformation, being goal oriented, making magic(k) happen.


	4. Card 2 – The High Priestess

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Card 2 – The High Priestess

**2 – The High Priestess** _[Arch Sacerdos – high priestess/woman of sacredness]_

**Teyla Emmagan** – She’s mysterious, intuitive and a powerful advisor. Introspection, meditation and receptiveness to the subconscious, implied by the moon above her head, reveal knowledge of the universe to her, and she speaks it in the language of symbols and archetypes. Balanced between the white and black marble pillars representing all the dualities of existence, she can give life and take it, walk in both the light and the darkness, work effectively in both the spiritual and material worlds.

 **Divinatory meanings:** insight, Mysteries, visions, heeding one’s inner voice, knowledge from the subconscious, wisdom, meditation, revelation of secrets – both good and bad, balance.


	5. Card 3 – The Empress

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Card 3 – The Empress

**3 – The Empress** _[Dominus Regina – emperor-queen]_

**Elizabeth Weir** – From her throne (desk) she directs and rules the expedition with self-confident strength, and the creative wisdom symbolized by her crown of stars. The all-mother, she can be strict and decisive, yet nurturing and caring, sometimes to the point of overprotectiveness.

 **Divinatory meanings:** nurturing, wealth, worry, patience, persistence, mothering, fairness, sympathy, consoling, domination, overprotectiveness, diplomacy, home.


	6. Card 4 – The Emperor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Card 4 – The Emperor

**4 – The Emperor** _[Dominus – ruler, emperor]_

**Stephen Caldwell** – Rooted in the seat of power, he commands. While some see him as too rigid and controlling, his belief in rules and structure, combined with his self-restraint, give him the power and stability to keep the ship – literal or metaphorical – on course. The symbols for Mars and Neptune (Poseidon) engraved on the pillars of his throne (captain’s chair), represent his strength in warfare and strategy.

 **Divinatory meanings:** stability and leadership, trust, respect, control, domination, restraint, guidance, restriction, military strength, protection.


	7. Card 5 – The Hierophant

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Card 5 – The Hierophant

**5 – The Hierophant** _[Clericus Censere – the cleric-judge]_

**Richard Woolsey** – He’s the representative of the organized belief system and conduit to the higher powers [the IOA]. He can be both judgmental and mentoring, believes in supporting the established order and in teamwork, ultimately because they’re for the good of the many. Behind him, the windows of the control center bring in the white light from beyond, yet subtly change our perceptions of it with their own colors.

 **Divinatory meanings:** beliefs, the establishment, tradition, the group, order, conformity, secret knowledge, mentoring, dutiful, respectable, conventional, benevolent, moral.


	8. Card 6 – The Lovers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Card 6 – The Lovers

**6 – The Lovers** _[Amatori – lovers]_

**John Sheppard & Rodney McKay **– Whether or not there’s a physically intimate relationship involved, these two do love each other. They’re best friends, companions in responsibility and recreation, and experience both their greatest joys and deepest pain via their counterpart. By turning to the rare person outside themselves who’s earned their trust, each man becomes a better and more whole person in himself, and gives his partner unconditional acceptance in return. Love can be gentle nourishing like the fruit tree and burning passion like the flames, but they both also know that like relationships, sustenance can turn to self-indulgence and fire can consume and destroy if not tempered by care.

 **Divinatory meanings:** love, lovers, partnership, cooperation and self-acceptance, harmonious union, passion, responsibility, commitment, potential for being hurt by the person closest to you, following the heart.


	9. Card 7 – The Chariot

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Card 7 – The Chariot

**7 – The Chariot** _[Chariotus – chariot]_

**The Puddle Jumper** (and its pilot) – The ‘Jumper can take you far and fast, but only when guided by someone with the strength and confidence to harness its latent powers and control its course through the universe. Flying the ‘Jumper isn’t just about getting there, though; it’s about becoming the driver or your own destiny.

 **Divinatory meanings:** application of will, manifestation, self control, emotional control, taking control of destiny, victory, journeys, exploration, conquest, overcoming obstacles.


	10. Card 8 – Strength

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Card 8 – Strength

**8 – Strength** _[Fortis – strong]_

**Ronon Dex** – While the Strength card usually shows a lion tamed by a woman, Ronon is both the feral animal and the guiding intelligence that tames it. His mane of leaves echoes the Green Man, a wild and gentle god of nature, a quiet yet inexorable power. His fortitude of character, perseverance, and controlled innate power allow him to triumph over all odds.

 **Divinatory meanings:** Strength, fortitude, courage, confidence, persistence, endurance, positive channeling of primal desires, mastery.


	11. Card 9 – The Hermit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Card 9 – The Hermit

**9 – The Hermit** _[Cellulanus – hermit/monk]_

**Radek Zelenka** – Faced with a difficult journey, at times surrounded by darkness of all kinds, his calm perceptions and focus on inner wisdom guide him on a true course. He often walks a solitary path, seeking the ultimate truths of science, the universe and himself. He’s a beacon of knowledge that lights the way for those lost in indecision, foolishness or the dark.

 **Divinatory meanings:** introspection, wisdom, knowledge for its own sake, guidance through depression or difficulties, life lessons, teacher, guide, solitude, solitary journey, enlightenment, reclusiveness, isolation.


	12. Card 10 – The Wheel of Fortune

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Card 10 – The Wheel of Fortune

**10 – The Wheel of Fortune** _[Rotis Fortuna – wheel of fortune]_

**The Stargate** – The wheel spins, the wormhole connects, and where it leads may be good or bad. Sometimes you have the power to choose where you want it to take you, and other times you can only choose how you deal with the situation in which you’ve found yourself. The four winged creatures from varying mythologies represent the Fates and the four elements.

 **Divinatory meanings:** fate, destiny, luck, change in circumstance, cycles, taking a chance, wheel of life, wheel of the year, the inevitable. 


	13. Card 11 – Justice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Card 11 – Justice

**11 – Justice** _[Justica – justice]_

**Samantha Carter** – The embodiment of many dualities, she weighs her choices with the balance scales of science and can enforce them with the sword of military strength. She aspires to do the right thing, even when that’s difficult. She brings just decisions to her leadership of Atlantis, and while she may never be truly impartial, she always tries to be fair and equitable.

 **Divinatory meanings:** Justice, balance, equity, fair decisions, legal matters, taking responsibility for your actions, keeping promises, accusations, evidence.


	14. Card 12 – The Hanged Man

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Card 12 – The Hanged Man

**12 – The Hanged Man** _[Vir Pendere – man hanging]_

**Rodney McKay** – Faced with a snare trap, a crisis on Atlantis, or a scientific challenge, Rodney may yell and flail, but when the situation knocks him off his feet, it brings out brilliant inspirations, practically beaming from his mind. He may sometimes accept enlightenment with poor grace or egotistic bluster, but his acceptance is inevitable and his resulting genius is unparalleled. He is willing to suffer for the sake of knowledge, sacrifice even himself for enlightenment. The ankh, symbol of life, shows us that this hanging is not death or execution, but a disconnecting from the outside world to better see within.

 **Divinatory meanings:** Acceptance of enlightenment, hard decisions, sacrifice, seeking answers, surrender, revelations, stubbornness, a dreamer, different perspective, suffering for the sake of knowledge, yielding to fate.


	15. Card 13 – Death

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Card 13 – Death

**13 – Death** _[Mortis – death, mortality]_

**Todd** – To a Wraith, human life is just a crop to be harvested, but he’s not merely a mindless killer, he’s a bringer of change and a force for destruction that makes way for rebuilding. Death has no malice; it’s just part of the natural order. Todd’s appearance always brings change, frequently a challenging one, to the people of Atlantis. The Tudor rose on his chest is a symbol of the Black Plague. The Death card rarely means a physical death, but is usually the death of a viewpoint or end of a situation.

 **Divinatory meanings:** difficult change, ending of a situation or phase of life, letting go, purging old ideas, transitions, new beginnings, regeneration, destruction, endings.


	16. Card 14 – Temperance / Art

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Card 14 – Temperance / Art

**14 – Temperance** _[Temperantia – temperance]_ Also known as **Art** _[Artis]_

**Evan Lorne** – He has within himself the talents of all the major arcana in the Atlantis Expedition, but his true strength is his ability to temper every quality with its ideal counterpoint to achieve perfect balance. In this archetypal vision, fractal wings represent the purity of his ideals. While he stays firmly centered in reality, he pours water from one vessel to another, transforming states of existence into an artistic unification of inner and outer light and darkness.

 **Divinatory meanings:** balance, positive transformations, patience, moderation, harmony, peace, art, the arts, synthesis of opposites, health, resolution of conflicts by compromise, purity of intention, peace.


	17. Card 15 - The Devil

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Card 15 - The Devil

**15 – The Devil** _[Antitheus – devil, anti-god]_

**Acastus Kolya** – He’s not pure evil, but he is a being of malice, selfishness, envy and vicious cruelty. If he can’t corrupt them, he imprisons and subjugates the good. His world is seen through the red cast of his malevolence, but when he challenges people to face their inner darkness, they gain greater self-knowledge, and can learn to channel their own negative traits toward a positive outcome.

 **Divinatory meanings:** facing restrictions, corruption from within, harm, loss of freedom, abuse, addiction, harmful, extremes, recognizing when you’re stuck in the situation, dealing with fears.


	18. Card 16 – The Tower

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Card 16 – The Tower

**16 – The Tower** _[Turrus – tower, turret]_

**The Central Tower of Atlantis** – Blasted with fire and lightning of the Asuran energy beam, the central tower of Atlantis faces total annihilation. Inset are snapshots of situations that may not have been final endings, but the point where all hope was lost; Elizabeth Weir mortally injured in the explosion, Marshall Sumner aged by the Wraith Keeper, Aiden Ford contaminated by Wraith enzyme addiction, ‘Vegas’ Detective Sheppard bleeding out amidst flaming wreckage.

 **Divinatory meanings:** unexpected catastrophe, turmoil, upheaval, cataclysm, ruin, hopeless situation, chaos, sudden change, downfall, tearing down of unstable foundations, material loss that may lead to spiritual growth.


	19. Card 17 – The Star

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Card 17 – The Star

**17 – The Star** _[Astralis – star]_

**Atlantis** – Hope may have the cool distance of the stars or the impact a whole city crash-landing on a new planet. Trying times are past (for the moment), and healing may begin. In the wake of a materially and spiritually difficult journey, the waters of New Lantea welcome the city home. The waves and the people of Atlantis aren’t yet at peace, but safety, recovery and a better life are now in sight.

 **Divinatory meanings:** Rejuvenation, hope, promise, healing, rebirth, peace, faith, clarity, renewal, the infinite.


	20. Card 18 - The Moon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Card 18 - The Moon

**18 - The Moon** _[Luna – moon]_

**Carson Beckett** – In the moonlight, he may be an ascended being, ghost, dream, illusion, or a manifestation of the subconscious – or just a message that’s stepped outside its expected place. He offers you medicine that’s hard to take; the choices you’re afraid to make, and the decisions you can’t. When you grasp for them, will they cut and burn, or slip through your fingers like mist?

 **Divinatory meanings:** Mysteries, dreams, nightmares, the subconscious, intuitive wisdom, fertile imagination, subjective perception, depths.


	21. Card 19 – The Sun

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Card 19 – The Sun

**19 – The Sun** _[Solaris – sun]_

**Torren John Emmagan** – He is the living embodiment of hope for the future. Secure in his mother’s strong, loving embrace and surrounded by a field of sunflowers, the happy baby gazes up at the sun.

 **Divinatory meanings:** light, clarity, triumph of good, joy, overcoming obstacles, purity, beginnings, energy, attainment, creativity, optimism, new ideas.


	22. Card  20 – Judgment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Card 20 – Judgment

**20 – Judgment** _[Judicium – judgment]_

**Cloister Village; Teer, Avrid & Hedda **– It may not be heralded with angelic trumpets, but Judgment Day comes to everyone sooner or later. Teer and the cloister village choose to leave their ties to the mortal plane behind in order to ascend to a higher state of being, while John Sheppard chooses the good he can still do in the material world – hard work and duty as his path to his higher self.

 **Divinatory meanings:** day of reckoning, transformation of the spirit, payback, cleansing, major change, forgiveness, releasing burdens, repentance, spiritual awareness, reevaluation, call of a higher power/purpose, leaving your old life behind.


	23. Card 21 – The World

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Card 21 – The World

**21 – The World** _[Universum – universe]  
_ (the world as in the everything, rather than as in the material sphere planet or plane) _  
_

**Everybody** – They’re family, joined together in the circle of the gate – as symbolized by the alpha (seen here as the gate symbol for Earth) and omega – the beginning and ending of all their journeys. They are complete in themselves, but one with all that is.

 **Divinatory meanings:** the universe, unity of all things, realization, end of the journey, success, oneness, wholeness, coming full circle, attainment.


End file.
